'Shameless' Enlists Sharon Lawrence for Key Season 7 Role (Exclusive)

The 'NYPD Blue' grad will recur on the upcoming seventh season of the Showtime dramedy.

Showtime's Shameless is adding a role model for Fiona (Emmy Rossum).

NYPD Blue grad Sharon Lawrence has snagged a key recurring role on the Showtime dramedy, The Hollywood Reporter has learned.

Lawrence will have a multiple-episode role and play Margo, a self-made real estate mogul who owns the coffee shop where Fiona works. The character will wind up becoming something of a role model for Fiona.

Season six of Shamelessended with a cliffhanger when Frank (William H. Macy) succeeded in ruining Fiona's wedding to Sean (Dermot Mulroney), the owner of the diner where they both worked. When Sean returned to find Fiona alone on the curb in her wedding dress after the failed ceremony, the couple parted ways — seemingly for good. (Given Mulroney is now the lead of CBS drama Pure Genius, it's unclear if he'll have any sort of presence when Shameless returns.)

Lawrence's recent TV credits include Rizzoli & Isles and Game of Silence. The actress is a four-time Emmy nominee (earning three for NYPD Blue and a fourth for guesting on Grey's Anatomy). She is repped by APA and Authentic Talent.

Season seven of Shameless is set to premiere Sunday, Oct. 2, on Showtime. Rossum will make her directorial debut with episode four.